New Yorkers Aman Ali and Bassam Tariq traveled to 30 states and 30 mosques while blogging about their experiences with the Muslim communities.

“We were trying to tell authentic stories that meant something to us,” Tariq said. “Especially us being Muslims in America, we just wanted to celebrate it and also share what we see.”

Ali and Tariq presented their “30 Mosques in 30 Days: An American Ramadan Road Trip Adventure” to St. Thomas students and the public Tuesday evening in the O’Shaughnessy Educational Center auditorium.

Tariq and Ali went during Ramadan because Muslims have more worship services during the holy month, and Islamic communities come together during the week.

The two men traveled while fasting for Ramadan and stopped at hotels or stayed with Muslim families.

“Generally, everyone was incredibly welcoming,” Tariq said. “I think the places that were more diverse I felt a little better at, versus a place that was a little more conservative.”

Freshman Mackenzie Welch said she was interested in the descriptions of the different mosques Ali and Tariq visited.

“They were very charismatic and entertaining,” Welch said. “I didn’t feel like I was at a school event.”

Ali and Tariq traveled to places from Las Vegas, Nev., to Mobile, Ala. They also made unintentional detours, including a visit to the 48-person town of Ross, N.D., where one of the first mosques in the U.S. is located.

“Just seeing how deep our roots go in this country, we were talking to living pieces of history, five or six generations of Muslim-Americans [who] had these artifacts and could tell us these stories,” Ali said.

Senior Mariam Farooq said she was looking forward to this event, and it delivered.

“I love them. I followed their blog during Ramadan, [and it] blew my mind that they were coming,” she said. “It was more than I expected.”

Ali said he hopes the project shows people “what you can do if you have a crazy idea and actually act on it.”

“It’s this whole idea of stepping out of your comfort zone, and taking some time to understand someone [who] you’re not accustomed to encountering on a daily basis,” Ali said.

Kelsey Broadwell can be reached at broa3324@stthomas.edu.